When We Rise
by bmwchickk
Summary: Sequel to When You Fell. Erela and Scath are caught up in the Evil Queen's curse and have to figure out how to live in Storybrook without getting caught. They find their way back to Neverland, only to find that past 'demons' have resurfaced, affecting more than just them this time.
1. Chapter 1

_**Erela**_

Darkness. I couldn't see anything. I couldn't move. My head was pounding and my ears were ringing.

Where am I?

" _Handy trick," Scath commented, but there was something in his voice beyond wry humor. Worry?_

 _I was about to land when something caught my eye. A huge cloud of roiling black smoke, so dark I couldn't see anything of the land it swallowed, was billowing towards us. "What the-" I began, but I was too late to pull up and the smoke washed over us, blowing my hair back and making Scath curse. My body went numb and I dropped Scath despite my best efforts to hold on. Coughing, unable to speak with the smoke filling my lungs, I dove and reached for Scath, my fingers brushing his arm-_

 _And everything went black._

Slowly, I began to remember scattered fragments of memories. An island - green, sand, a beach -

We'd been flying. We? Yes - I'd been with Scath. Carrying him. Over the water? And then - and then - he'd directed me toward the forest - hadn't told me why, and -

There was nothing else.

" _Okay, love. We're headed to the Enchanted Forest. Be careful_." A familiar voice echoed in my head. _Killian_. The rest of my memories flooded back in a tidal wave that dragged me from unconsciousness. My eyes snapped open and I gasped for air. I blinked several times to adjust my eyes to the light. I had been lying on a relatively smooth, black surface with yellow lines running through the center. I had never seen anything like it before. Taking a deep breath, I got to my feet so I could see more. Buildings sat next to the road, stretching for a long way in almost every direction.

"I have to find Scath," I mumbled to myself, "he might be hurt." I jumped into the air, preparing to flex my wings and fly -

But I didn't go anywhere. I fell back down. "What the hell?" I turned my head around to figure out what was wrong with my wings. They weren't there. " _Really_?" I muttered, the shock of seeing them gone again momentarily blocked by annoyance. "I just got those back."

"Get outta the road! I'm trynna drive here!" A man yelled. I turned my head around to see a small man sticking his head out of a strange looking carriage.

"Where are the horses?" I wondered aloud. Nothing was making sense. The grumpy man looked just as confused as I was, but before he could respond, I heard a familiar voice. I whipped my head around and immediately started to walk towards it, recognition unfurling within my mind. The voice belonged to an older man with shoulder length brown hair and a cane. As I got closer, the face became even more familiar, until I finally managed to put a name to it.

"Rumplestiltskin? Is that you?" I asked, brows knitted in confusion.

"I think you've got the wrong person," he said, slightly irritated. It had to be him. He looked exactly the same, minus the scales. But I didn't remember meeting him. I knew that I had known him for a long time, but I didn't remember anything about him other than the appearance and name.

Rumplestiltskin began to walk away, but I couldn't lose him. Everything here was so strange, and he was my only sense of familiarity. So, I followed him.

"Please, just tell me where I am!" I called after him. He just continued to shake his head, not responding. "Rumplestiltskin!"

"R...Mr. Gold," a woman with short, black hair said, a hint of worry in her voice, "is this woman bothering you?"

"Truthfully, Madame Mayor, yes," he replied, talking as if I wasn't standing right behind him. "She believes I'm some man named 'Rumpelstiltskin.'" The woman's eyes widened, but she quickly recovered.

"Oh, I'm sure she's just confused." She smiled, her voice like honey, far too sweet to be sincere. "Here, come with me. I'm Regina Mills, the mayor. I can help you find whoever you're looking for."

"Mayor?" I questioned, still incredibly confused. I didn't know if I could trust her. I tried to use my power, tried to judge for certain her honesty, but it was somehow gone as well. She seemed friendly enough, however, so I guessed that she probably knew what was going on. She placed her hand on my back and led me to a building nearby, then to a room. Everything in the room was black and white. It was very clean as if no one had ever set foot in it before.

"Now," she said, locking the door to stop any possible eavesdroppers, "Who the hell are you?" Her whole demeanor changed from the friendly person trying to help to someone sinister in an instant and the air in the room seemed to grow heavier, the light darker.

"Who wants to know?" I spat back, immediately on the defensive. She ignored my question.

"How did the curse not affect you?"

"What c-" I froze, realization dawning on me. "Are you talking about that black smoke in the Enchanted Forest?"

"Answer my question! I am the Queen, you must obey me!"

"Queen? I don't answer to you! Where did you take me?"

"I cursed the entire Enchanted Forest and brought everyone to a land without magic," she said flatly, finally answering my question. She seemed to think that by telling me what had happened, it would jog my memory or something. Yeah, right.

"Why?"

"Why does it matter to you? You shouldn't even be here."

"Why?" I pressed, willing her to tell me. Finally, she seemed to cave, though it was more likely that she just wanted me to shut up.

"To take away Snow White's happiness."

"What?" I asked, dumbfounded. _Is she for real?_ "That is literally the dumbest thing I've ever heard! You cursed an entire land because of _one person?"_

"You wouldn't understand," she snapped. "You probably haven't experienced such betrayal before."

"You're crazy," I scoffed, backing up towards the door. "I'm going to warn these people!"

"No one will believe you," she declared, her confidence returning as my confusion and fear became obvious. She laughed as she began walking towards me. "They'll think _you're_ the crazy one!" Her face brightened as if she had gotten an idea. I couldn't just stand here anymore. I grabbed the handle on the door and just as I was about to swing it open, Regina hit me on the back of my head with a lamp. I fell to the floor, clutching my head as pain exploded into bright lights in my vision. I tried to stand back up, but the room was spinning and I couldn't grab on to anything. Nausea welled up in my throat and I hit the ground hard, the bright spots fading to black.

"Hello? Officer Graham? This crazy woman broke into my office and attacked me! She thought I was some 'Evil Queen' hellbent on revenge on some fairytale characters!" Regina was talking to a small, glowing box. I tried to stay conscious, tried to listen, but then I blacked out for the second time that day.

* * *

I woke up with a pounding headache on a weird bed in _another_ strange room. I wasn't wearing Killian's dress anymore, and I examined the new dress that had replaced it. It was simple; just a rough, blue dress. I tried to move my arm, but it was chained to the bed. I looked around the room, but the light just hurt my eyes and moving was making my headache worse.

"Ah, you're awake," a man said as he entered the room.

"Yeah," I muttered, shielding my eyes from the lights with the arm that wasn't chained.

"Oh do you want me to turn those off?" he asked. I didn't know what he meant, but I nodded anyway. Then the lights were gone. He started talking again, but I stopped focusing.

"Ma'am?" he said after a while. "I asked you a question." I stared back at him blankly. He chuckled before speaking again, "I asked you what your name was."

"Erela," I mumbled.

"Full name," he said. My full name. Did I even have one? 'Erela' was the only name I remember. The only one I know. "It's okay, you can answer that later," he said slowly after writing something down. "I'm Officer Graham. I need to ask you a few questions."

I stared at him for a few seconds before I remembered what had happened before I'd woken up here, and I sat up, ignoring the way my stomach twisted. Officer Graham stared at me as I began to speak.

"No, wait, we can't just sit around here. I - we - need to go back and find Regina. She's lying to you. She's lying to everyone!" My voice rose to a yell by the end but I still couldn't quite seem to focus properly.

"How so?" Graham asked, writing something else down.

"She said she wants to take away Snow White's happiness so she cursed the whole Enchanted Forest! She's insane!" I shouted, trying to get out of bed and stand up only to fall back down again.

"I'm afraid, Ms. Erela, that you're not making much sense. Why would someone curse an entire forest if they're only mad at one person?"

"I don't know! You should be asking her these questions, not me."

"But you're the one who attacked the Mayor. I'm just trying to figure out the real reason."

"I didn't attack her! She was the one throwing things at me! She hit me in the head with a strange looking lantern - that's why I blacked out! I was just trying to leave so I could warn everyone about the crazy lady in charge!"

"Listen to yourself," he said calmly, speaking almost as though he was talking to a child, "does that sound even the least bit sane?"

His tone pissed me off. "I'm not making this up!"

"That's what I was afraid of." He sighed. "Why are all the cute ones crazy?" He muttered to himself. He walked out of the room and began talking to someone. I decided to relax - my head was absolutely killing me. I mused that I would need to get that checked out once I got out of wherever I was. I closed my eyes, hoping I could just fall asleep and that, when I woke up, this would all be a dream and I would be back in Killian's arms. About ten minutes later, I heard three pairs of feet walking into the room. I opened my eyes to see Graham walking back in, two men trailing behind him.

"Hi, Erela," one of the men said quietly, "I'm Doctor Hopper and this is Doctor Whale." He motioned to the man with brown hair wearing all white. Everyone was looking at me like I was a puppy with a broken leg, and it was starting to piss me off even more than their habit of talking down to me.

"Are you guys going to get me out of here so I can warn everyone?" I asked. "Because, if not, I don't care who you are."

"Actually, we were hoping to take you somewhere else," Doctor Hopper said. I sighed, ignoring him, and closing my eyes once again. Maybe if I ignored them for long enough they'd just give up and let me go. Sadly, that wasn't the case. Two pairs of feet thudded against the ground, heading towards me. "Can you please stand up?" Doctor Hopper asked.

"No," I muttered, shaking my chained arm while opening my eyes to give him a pointed look. I was being stubborn, but I also couldn't manage to stand up without falling back down. I'd already tried. I blinked my eyes and saw Graham unchaining me. I still didn't budge.

"I really didn't want to have to do this," Doctor Hopper sighed. Something in his tone sent shivers down my spine.

"Do what?" I asked, barely hiding the fear in my voice. Doctor Whale appeared next to Doctor Hopper and pressed something into my side, doing it so quickly that it was over before I could pull away. It kind of felt like a bee sting. I started to feel numb, and soon I couldn't move. Hands wrapped around me, picking me up and transporting me to another bed, but before I could really process what was happening, I blacked out for the third time that day.

 **~A/N~**

 **Hey, guys!**

 **A lot of people have been asking about the sequel, so here it is (well the first chapter at least)! I am working though some hardcore writers block, but I'll get over it! I was going to write the whole thing first and post it all on a schedule, but so many people have been messaging me and asking about it. So, I'll post as I go!**

 **Thanks to those who have stuck around this long! It means a lot to me**


	2. Chapter 2

_**Scath**_

"Shit," I muttered as soon as I regained consciousness. I woke up in a tree. I almost fell out of said tree, but that's besides the point. Before making my way down the tree, I remembered how I got there.

"Erela?" I called out, angrily, "What happened to not dropping me?"

No response. I looked around at the ground below me.

"Erela, this isn't funny."

Silence.

"Erela?" I climbed higher up the tree so I could see better. I saw a lot of trees, and something odd. A weird looking town wasn't far from me. I didn't remember the Enchanted Forest looking anything like this. Although, I haven't been there in a while, so who knows? "Erela?" I tried for the last time. I couldn't see her anywhere and I was starting to worry.

After climbing down the tree, I began walking towards the town. Maybe she saw it too. As I was walking, I noticed black cloth sticking out under a pile of leaves. I bent down to examine it. After pushing away the leaves, I realized it was a pile of clothes in an abandoned campsite. Whoever was here before left pretty quickly. I looked back down at the clothes. They looked nothing like what I was wearing, but I decided that, if I wanted to blend in, this was what I needed to wear. I changed quickly and checked around for anything else that could come in handy before continuing my walk towards the town. It wasn't too far, so the rest of the walk passed quickly. Once I entered the town, I felt something strange wash over me. It felt evil and suffocating, like I was trapped.

I continued walking on the strange road before I began to see other people. It seemed to be an old man angrily talking to a younger, black haired woman. The man limped away, revealing another person, Erela. I began walking over to her, but something told me to stop. So, I stayed within earshot, but remained unseen.

"Mayor?" Erela questioned before the woman placed her hand on Erela's back and walked away. I followed closely behind, but far enough away to remain unnoticed. Why was she trusting this woman? The Erela I know wasn't too easily persuaded, though maybe she used her power to decipher whether this woman was trustworthy or not. Soon, they reached a room within a large building.

"Now," the woman said, closing the door before I could slip inside. I heard an odd click, and footsteps walking away. I tried to slowly open the door, but it wouldn't budge. I tried to listen through the walls, but they weren't thin enough. I couldn't hear much, but I did hear the woman confess to Erela that she cursed the Enchanted Forest.

So this is all her fault. She brought us here.

Suddenly, I heard a crash and then a body slump to the floor. It was probably the woman. Erela can hold her own, especially when she's pissed. And if it really is the woman's fault that we're here and not with Hook, then Erela is probably livid.

"I'm just outside your office, Regina," I heard a man say from down the hallway. I slipped into a room nearby, but left the door open a bit so I could still see. A man with brown hair and extremely tight pants knocked on the door and the woman let him in, leaving the door wide open. Erela was on the floor, probably unconscious.

"Damn it," I muttered under my breath. I watched as the man picked up Erela and left the office.

"She was crazy!" The black haired woman, who I'm assuming is Regina, yelled after him, "She needs to be sent-"

"I have to take her to the hospital first," the man responded, his voice strained. He looked like he would drop Erela soon.

"What? Why?"

"I think you gave her a concussion," he chuckled, "Doctor Whale will diagnose her in the hospital before taking her down to the ward." She nodded, and he walked away. Once she closed her door, I opened mine. I ran down the hallway, but he was gone. I cursed again. I continued down the hallway until I made my way outside, hoping he was still there.

He wasn't.

"Excuse me," a woman with short black hair said, "Are you looking for something? You look lost."

"Uh, yeah," I said. The woman had caught me completely off guard. "Where is the, uh, hospital?"

"Oh it's really close, I could walk you," she smiled warmly.

"Really?" I asked. I was growing suspicious. She was acting way too nice.

"Of course! I'm Mary Margaret," she said as she began to walk again. There was a pause. "And you are...?"

"Oh, right," I said, awkwardly, "I'm Sc- Seth. Yeah, Seth."

"Are you sure? You seem uncertain," Mary Margaret laughed. I nodded. "You must be new here. Do you have a place to stay?"

"Uh w-"

"Because if you don't, there's a lovely bed and breakfast right over there," she said, pointing to a blue building, "It's connected to Granny's diner. Best diner in town." She continued talking for the rest of the walk. Honestly, I tuned her out. I didn't really care about beds or breakfasts right now, Erela was in trouble. And I was the only person that could help her.

"Anyway, here we are!" Mary Margaret said, stopping in front of another large building. We walked in and she led me to a woman in a uniform. "Hi, we're looking for a patient," Mary Margaret said.

"Name, please?" she replied. Mary Margaret looked to me. I didn't know if Erela used pseudonym as well, but I couldn't think of any other names she'd go by.

"Erela," I said.

"Last name?"

"Jones," the name came out of my mouth before I could stop myself. What else would she use? I don't think Angels have last names.

"I'm sorry, but no one by that name is checked in here," she said. Before I could respond, she piped up again, "but there was a Jane Doe brought in a few minutes ago."

"I'm not looking for a Jane," I told her, slightly confused. Did she not hear me before? Mary Margaret and the woman started laughing.

"That means they don't know the patient's name," Mary Margaret explained.

"I would let you see her, but there's an ongoing police investigation that involves her and I am under strict orders not to let anyone other than the police and Doctor Whale in there," the woman said. "Is there someway I can contact you later to ID her?"

"We'll come back in a few hours," Mary Margaret said, before pulling me out of the hospital.

"What are you doing?" I asked, angrily. Why is she taking me away from Erela?

"Now I can show you to Granny's!" she said, still walking away. I was debating just letting her go, but I decided against it. I needed someone on my side to help me understand this weird land. Especially since Erela was gone.

We entered another place, the Diner, I believe.

"Hi, Mary Margaret," an old woman smiled as we walked through the door. She took green paper from a man sitting near her before giving him a bag. He stood up and walked past us. I assumed the green paper was similar to the gold coins Hook had cared so much for. "Who's this?" the old woman asked, looking at me.

"Is he homeless? And what is he wearing?" another, much younger, woman scoffed. She had long, brown and red hair and was wearing a white shirt tied in a way that allowed me to see her stomach, as well as the shortest skirt I had ever seen.

"I could say the same for you," I retorted, referring to the amount of skin she was showing. She looked like the women the pirates would meet with when they docked. She rolled her eyes and walked away.

"Sorry about Ruby, she's…" the woman started, but couldn't find the words to end her sentence. "I'm Widow Lucas, but everyone here calls me Granny."

"I'm Sc-Seth," I replied, still getting used to being called by my real name. It's been a really long time.

"He needs a room here, he's new," Mary Margaret said.

"Oh sure, would you like forest view or square view?" she asked me.

"Uh, forest?" I said, but it came out sounding more like a question than an answer. I wasn't sure that I even needed somewhere to stay. I was able to live in the Neverland Forest, so this one would be a piece of cake.

"Okay, and how will you be paying?" she asked. I reached into my pocket and pulled out the same green paper I saw the man give her before and placed it in her hand. She walked away and returned with different green paper and a key. "You'll be staying in Room 14. You had enough for two nights, but if you want to extend your stay, it's $70 a night," she explained as she handed me my belongings. Mary Margaret and I walked to my room and I unlocked my door.

"This looks cozy," Mary Margaret said as she peered around the room. The walls were covered in images of flowers and framed paintings of boats.

"Yeah, I guess," I mumbled, walking over to the bed. I couldn't remember the last time I had a proper bed, or needed to sleep for that matter.

"Do you have any more money, Seth?" she asked after a few minutes of silence. She was careful with her words, as she didn't want to overstep her boundaries. I shook my head.

"I'll figure something out," I said, focusing my gaze on a particularly large tree outside my window.

"Do you think we could head back to the hospital?"

"Of course," she smiled before walking out the door. She was clearly trying to help me in any way possible. It was strange to me, no one has ever been this helpful without a motive. I just couldn't figure out hers. I followed her, stopping only to re-lock my door.

* * *

 **AUTHOR'S NOTE**

 **...um hi guys! I'm back! Kinda...**

 **Lol so yeah I'm in college now which is kinda crazy bc like I was a freshman in high school when I started this series. Now I'm a freshman in college and I feel like shiiiiiit haha sorry for not updating in a billion years. I don't even have a good excuse other than writer's block. Turns out that finals week is a great cure for writer's block btw I wrote like five chapters in attempt to procrastinate studying for exams. I'm trying really really hard to write this and I think I'm on a roll rn. I've written up through chapter 8! So yeah I'm trying!**

 **So yeah I should be updating more now so favorite, follow, and leave a review :)**


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